Switchblade
by Demon of Shadows
Summary: I had to reload this because of some computer glitch, so here it is again. A new kid joins the team, but his dark past may land the Titans in trouble. Takes place after 'Black and White' by Legend Maker (she rox!)
1. Switchblade: Savior

[Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans.

A/N: Noel Collins/Savior is the property of Legend Maker; it is recommended that you read her fic, Black and White, to understand this fic.]

[Downtown Pizza Parlor]

"Number 52, order's ready!" The cashier yelled out over as he placed three pizza trays on the counter. Seconds later, the pizzas were shrouded in black as they floated over

towards their intended table. "Oh man! I asked for NO sausage!" Beast Boy complained as Raven finished placing the pizza's on the table. "Um, no, that ones mine." Cyborg

said, switching the sausage pizza with another one. "Oh, cool, thanks Cy." Beast Boy said, before chomping on his pizza. "I can't believe they actually were able to fill ALL of

your topping choices." Raven said with a hint of distaste, examining Starfire's pizza. It was covered in mint paste, Starburst, M&M's, Gummi Worms, and Skittles, just to name

a few of the bizarre toppings. "Earth is home to many flavors, I am simply exercising my freedom to experience them." Starfire said defensively, sampling a slice of her own pizza

with a smile. Robin, with a little more hesitance, took a slice as well. "I still can't believe that there's a pizza parlor that can cater to your bizarre tastes." Savior said lightly, watching BB

sink his teeth into another slice of tofu cheese pizza before he used the Shimmer to grab a slice of Cyborg's sausage pizza. "Eh, since we've saved them a few times, they owe us." Beast

Boy replied. "Nasty." Was all Robin could think of saying before chomping on his own pizza. "Eh, when you save a pizza parlor a few dozen times, plus getting them a shitload of

publicity, they tend to make allowances." BB said sagely. The others nodded their assent, and then they froze as Robin's communicator rung. "Trouble at the bank, Titans, go!" Robin yelled as they sprang into action.

* * *

They arrived at the bank five minutes later, out of breath. "We need (pant) a Titan (pant) mobile, or something." Beast Boy panted. "I said that a long time ago." Savior said,

though he didn't seem out of breath at all. Beast Boy was the most winded, due to the fact that it had been his turn to carry Cyborg. "I do not mean to interrupt, Beast Boy, but where is

the trouble?" Starfire asked, turning in a full circle, arms spread wide. Indeed, there was nothing to suggest that anything was amiss. Cars driving normally, people walking on the

sidewalks, birds singing, everything was normal. "False alarm?" Cyborg said, moving in front of the reflecting glass windows that made up the front of the Jump City Downtown Bank.

"I'm thinking so, Titans, lets-

**BOOM!**

Every single pane of glass exploded outward with a rumbling explosion, showering the Titan's with the shimmering shards. "Son of a-" Cyborg cut himself off, remembering when

he had uttered a string of curse words after a particularly nasty defeat at Beast Boy's hands, and Starfire, not knowing their meaning, went around using those exact words in casual

conversation. Cyborg could still recall when the Mayor wanted to thank the Titans for rescuing his kidnapped son and she had used a few of those swears. The Mayor's face was so red

he looked like he had a tomato for a head, but back to the moment. "What the heck just happened?" Beast Boy asked as he transformed into a gorilla, throwing off some rubble. "Hello

Titans, enjoying yourselves?" Came a nasal, annoying, and all too familiar voice. "Mumbo…." Raven grumbled, lifting up the rubble in the air with her Shadow powers. "That's the

amazing Mumbo!" Mumbo yelled, waving his hand. A dozens of robots floated out from the bank, but they weren't exactly Slade-quality. They were shaped more like a garbage can,

with claw-like arms and stupid looking heads. Roughly half of them were depositing bags of money in a large pile. "Like my robot army, you meddling kids? I got them off the internet

from some guy named Jack Spicer." Mumbo said. [A/N: Points to the reader who knows who Jack Spicer is!] "So? Their flying tin cans, Titans, go!" Robin commanded, and the Titans

sprang into action.

* * *

"Robots, attack!" Mumbo yelled, and the robots surged into action, firing lasers and missiles. "Tin can's, meet the better man!" Cyborg crowed, firing his proton cannon in all

directions, causing robots to drop like flies. "Azarath….. Metrion…… Zinthos!" Raven shouted, grabbing a large section of rubble and sending it at more of the robots. "Beast Boy, turn

into an armadillo!" Savior shouted, lashing out with the Shimmer, smashing more and more robots. "An armadillo, why?" Beast Boy replied, ducking under two robots as they crashed

together. "Just do it!" Savior said, and BB grudgingly applied. Savior reached out with the Shimmer and picked him up, then promptly started to swing him around, smashing robots with

every swing. "Curl up!" Savior shouted to Beast Boy, who promptly obeyed. "Fastball!" Savior crowed as he released Beast Boy at an amazingly fast velocity, sending him straight into

the horde of robots. "Strike!" Savior yelled triumphantly as Beast Boy's passage caused most of the remaining robots to explode. "Nononononono! My robot army, I was still making

payments!" Mumbo screamed, before he took out his wand and started chanting some bizarre words. "Not gonna happen Mumbo, unless you're going to dance and change your name

to the amazing Mambo!" Robin said as he swung towards Mumbo. "Nope, but you are!" Mumbo giggled as he shot a blue blast at Robin, whose legs immediately started twitching.

When he landed, Robin immediately started doing the Mambo with a half-destroyed robot. "Thanks for the tip, Harry Potter- I mean, Book of Evil Spells." Mumbo hazily amended.

"You will stop making Robin dance crazily!" Starfire said as she flew towards Mumbo with Starbolt-charged hands. "Sorry dearie, that's just not in the cards." Mumbo said, and with a

flick of his wrists, he sent cards flying straight at Starfire. "You try to delay me with these playing cards?" Starfire said, confused. "Let's just say I'm played with a _loaded_ deck."

Mumbo said, and with a snap of his fingers, the cards exploded. Starfire was thrown backwards in a solid brick wall, and then she slid to the ground, unconscious. "Now that the pesky

brat is out of my way, I can turn my attention to the- eeep!" Mumbo gasped as he turned, finding the remainder of the Titans standing before him, bruised and scraped, but alive, and

none of them looked very happy. Mumbo didn't seem too shocked, however, as a wicked smile slid over his face. "I foresaw this happening, therefore, I planned ahead. Look towards

your friend Starfire." Mumbo said. They did, and they gasped as one body, for one of Mumbo's robots was standing over her, laser cannon aimed right at her face. "I'll be going now."

Mumbo said, as he magicked the cash into a single bag, which he picked up and started to walk away. "No dice, deuchbag." Came a voice from an adjoining alley, and a figure leapt

out at Mumbo. Before any of them could blink, he kicked the wand out of Mumbo's hands and spiraling into the air, and with a quick spin, kicked away the bag. "What the-" Mumbo

said before he realized just what was happening. "Robot, attack!" Mumbo screamed right before he got nailed in the face by a strong uppercut, knocking him out. The Titans then

realized what he meant; the robot would be able to shoot Starfire before they could reach them. "No!" Savior shouted, lashing out with a Shimmer strand. Robin and Cyborg also

fired/threw their own projectiles but even as they attacked the robot, they knew in their hearts they wouldn't be able to make it in time.

* * *

Suddenly, hope arrived in form of a spear-like strand of metal that flew faster than all of their attacks combined and speared the robot straight through laser cannon, causing it to

overload and explode. "And another one bites the dust." Came a voice, nearly causing them to jump. It was the person that had stopped Mumbo and saved Starfire. He was clad rather

unremarkably for a hero; he wore sneakers, blue jeans, and a baggy gray hooded sweatshirt. His face was hidden by a black balaclava. One hand was outstretched, the silvery-metal

protruding from the center of his black-gloved palm. He jerked his hand backwards, as if retrieving a yo-yo, and the strand retreated into his palm. "THANK YOU SO MUCH!"

Starfire squealed as she practically tackled him, enwrapping him in a bone-crushing hug. The guy managed to gag out something, which was remarkable because he didn't look like he

had much breathing room. "Star, I don't think he can breathe." Robin said, gently unwrapping Starfire's arms from her savior. "Thank you." The guy gasped. "So, what's your name?"

Cyborg said, stepping up to the newcomer. "Uh….. don't have one, a superhero name that is. My real name is Soren." Came the surprising reply. "Really? That's a cool name, Soren.

Sounds like a biker. Chilling on the edge of the law..." Beast Boy would have gone on if Soren hadn't put his palm flat across Beast Boy's mouth. "You're done." He said. Beast Boy

jumped backwards in surprise. "Your hands are freezing!" Beast Boy shouted. "Comes from having metal hands." Soren replied, holding his hands up. The Titans collectively inhaled as

his hands glinted in the light. "Wow…." Starfire marveled, tracing her fingertips along the chilled steel. "So…. Soren, what is it you can do." Raven asked. "This." And with that, Soren

flexed his fingers, like a pro hacker preparing to crack a tough firewall. Suddenly, the fingers on his right hand seemed to lengthen slightly, before they each became an immensely long

thread of steel, and then they twisted around one another and suddenly melded into a curved blade. "I can change my hands into weapons, but it takes a great load of concentration."

Soren explained as his hand snapped back to its original form, and then he turned his other hand into an axe. "Cool!" Beast Boy said, examining Soren's Axe-hand closer. "He's a

walking Swiss Army Knife!" Cyborg exclaimed. "Army Knife? I think we have a name for you, friend Soren. What is the word Raven, that knife that springs open?" Starfire

wondered. "Switchblade." Raven said. "Then Soren, your new superhero name is Switchblade. Costume will be worked on later." Robin said. "Wait, you're giving me a superhero

name? Does that mean-"Soren asked anxiously. "We'll see, let's head back to the Tower." Robin said, and the various group members nodded and headed that way. "You know what

that means, right Noel?" Cyborg muttered to the white-haired teen. Savior rolled his eyes as he and Cyborg finished with the exact same word, "_Hazing_."

[To Be Continued]


	2. Switchblade: Only the Facts

[Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans. A/N: Savior is the property of Legend Maker.]  
  
"So this is the Tower." Soren said as he was given the five-minute walking  
  
tour of the main floor.  
  
"Pretty much. It ain't much, but it's home." Savior said, putting his arm  
  
around Raven, causing her to blush lightly. Soren glanced at the gesture and  
  
smiled, but Raven could tell that his smile was tinged with sadness. She was  
  
going to mention it to Noel.  
  
If Soren hadn't suddenly let out a cry. Noel nearly smashed the nearest table  
  
as an automatic counter to the noise, expecting an attack, as Soren rushed  
  
over to the TV.  
  
"They make TV's this big?" He said in surprise.  
  
"Yup, and the sound system is absolutely primo." Cyborg said with a smile,  
  
patting the side of the TV. "Cy, don't get distracted here! Remember?  
  
Hazing?" Beast Boy yelled. "Oh yeah, right. Now, does anyone remember  
  
where we put the paddles?" Cyborg wondered, heading towards the storage  
  
closet.  
  
"Oh joy, here we go again." Savior muttered.  
  
Soren paled, or paled as much as they could tell, since his face was still  
  
hidden by his balaclava.  
  
"No. No, no, no, no, NO. I will not subject myself to paddling! That's a big  
  
no in my book!" Soren protested loudly.  
  
" I think I said the same thing, and I STILL had to be "Wreck of the  
  
Hesperused" when I became a Titan. I think I still have a bruise, I think."  
  
Savior said, with a slight smirk that showed he didn't really have an unfond  
  
memory of the time.  
  
"Agreed. If you men insist on doing this silly ritual, at least for the sake of  
  
difference make him do something else." Raven said.  
  
"Aww man." Cyborg complained, and then paused as Beast Boy  
  
whispered something into his ear. "Ok. Better idea. Cyborg said as Beast Boy handed him a blindfold. Soren looked scared as the others watched Cyborg advance on Soren.  
  
"Uh.guys? Guys?" Soren asked, watching Cyborg advance closer and  
  
closer.  
  
"On second thought, maybe the paddles would have been better for you  
  
Soren." Savior said as the world went dark.   
  
* * *  
  
  
"Hopefully you are familiar with the concept of a Leap of Faith."  
  
Cyborg said. He stood behind a blindfolded Soren as he finished binding his  
  
wrists with a strong cord.  
  
"A little bit." Soren said, his voice slightly quivering.  
  
"Ok, then I'll refresh your memory." Robin said, stepping up next to Soren.  
  
"You will step off this ledge, and one of us, you won't know who, will catch  
  
you. The point of this is, if you're going to be the Teen Titan, you have to be  
  
able to trust your team mates. "Oh, and you can't use your powers either.  
  
Robin said.  
  
"Yes, friend Soren, trust is important. Without trust, there is no teamwork."  
  
Starfire said, floating somewhere in front of Soren.  
  
"And bad mistakes happen." Savior muttered, a tinge of bitterness in his  
  
voice. Soren didn't ask.  
  
"Besides, if we miss the catch, we lose our superhero license." Beast Boy  
  
said, elbowing Soren in the back. A little too hard.  
  
"AAAHHHHH!" Soren yelled as he fell off the edge of the T-Tower,  
  
plummeting at great speed.  
  
"Must trust! Must trust!" Soren thought desperately, forcing himself to calm  
  
his nerves. Far below him, Raven and Savior teleported out of the shadows  
  
at the foot of the Tower.  
  
"Is he relaxed? If he's tensed up catching him could be as bad as landing."  
  
Savior asked. Raven paused, closing her eyes as she sensed out Soren's  
  
thoughts.  
  
"Amazingly calm." Raven replied, with more than a hint of surprise.  
  
"Really then? Hmmm, not bad. But there's a drastic difference between  
  
being pushed by a friend and being confronted by an enemy." Savior said,  
  
extending a Shimmer strand from his palm. Once fully extended, it coiled  
  
like a spring beneath Soren's plummeting body, cushioning his fall gently.  
  
"Did I make it?" Soren asked, slightly dazed.  
  
"No, this is heaven. It's surprisingly unoriginal." Savior said sarcastically.  
  
"Of course. Congratulations. You passed the first test." Savior said, leading  
  
Soren back inside.  
  
* * *  
  
  
The first hazing ritual had given way to the second, Twenty  
  
Questions. Technically, it was Twenty-Four Questions, since each Titan got  
  
to ask four questions apiece. (Attempts to work out exactly how many each  
  
Titan got with a number like 20 among six people had never been settled)  
  
They all lounged on the semi-circular couch in front of the TV, except for  
  
Soren, who sat on a chair before them. He was still in his 'costume' of street  
  
clothes and a balaclava.  
  
"Ok, before we start, isn't there a more inventive method? I mean, I  
  
practically went through the same stuff, except for a slight difference, what  
  
was it again, oh yes, I HAD WONDER WOMAN'S LASSO ON ME."  
  
Savior said.  
  
"Hey, she guards it better now. What can you do?" Beast Boy said. Savior  
  
smacked his hand into his face and muttered into his palm.  
  
"Indeed. For lack of art, we have this." Cyborg said. "Alright, Soren, if that  
  
is your real name, Remove your mask." Beast Boy said. Soren shrugged, as  
  
if it wasn't that big of a deal to him, and unwrapped his balaclava. Beneath  
  
it, he has a face that reminded the Titans of Sanosake Sagara from Rurouni  
  
Kenshin, including the spiky brown hair.  
  
"Alrighty, what is your favourite video game out of these three? Soul  
  
Calibur 2, Mechracer X, or PSO?" Cyborg asked the now unmasked Soren.  
  
"And they claimed Starfire wasted her questions." Savior muttered, recalling  
  
something only he knew.  
  
"Dunno. I'm an all-around fan of all three. Can't really say I prefer any of  
  
them over the others." Soren replied almost instantly.  
  
"Favorite musical performance group?" Starfire said. "  
  
You mean band, right?" Soren asked with a raised brow, receiving a discreet  
  
nod from the others. "Once again, I can't say I prefer any one band over the  
  
other. I like rock a lot, its cool." Soren said.  
  
"Stupidest thing you ever did?" Beast Boy said, earning expectant eye rolls  
  
from the others.  
  
"Accidentally dropped my pants in the middle of downtown." Soren said,  
  
causing everyone to gasp, or some of them of them. Robin, Beast Boy, and  
  
Cyborg looked like they were about to burst out laughing.  
  
"That's not really so bad." Savior said.  
  
"Why not?" Soren replied.  
  
"Savior would know. He committed a major felony." Beast Boy said,  
  
earning the white haired teenagers another raised eyebrow from Soren.  
  
"I HAD JUST GOTTEN MY POWERS. I WAS CONFUSED. And, I might  
  
add, never convicted in a court of law or even caught." Savior half protested,  
  
half snapped.  
  
"Ok, for the sake of my own peace of mind, I have to ask.why?" Raven  
  
said, shuddering slightly. She did not like the potential humiliation of the  
  
act.  
  
"It was when I first got my powers. I was walking downtown when a guy  
  
snatched a purse from an old lady. I stopped him with my spear-attack you  
  
guys saw earlier, but when I snapped it back, it didn't retract as fast as usual  
  
and slashed my belt. Hence, my pants dropped. Nearly got arrested for  
  
indecent exposure too."  
  
At this, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Robin actually did burst out laughing, long  
  
and loud. Savior just muttered something about the fallacies of law enforcement.  
  
"How did you get your powers?" Starfire asked.  
  
"Not entirely sure about how I got these powers really. I worked part-time at  
  
the docks for awhile, and there have been multiple chemical spills on the  
  
docks. I was exposed to a few of them, but they never seemed to affect me.  
  
Then, I went home sick one day and boom, I woke up with metal hands."  
  
Soren said.  
  
"Ok, then, favorite food!" Starfire said with a wide smile. Everybody else  
  
face vaulted at the sudden switch of topics, including Soren. "Uh.I like  
  
Oriental food a lot, course, I love to cook in general." Soren said. "  
  
Aww man, what a waste of a question! Cyborg complained.  
  
"Says the man who inquired about video games." Savior said.  
  
"Shaddup! Ok, are you one of those people who will be a constant bother  
  
and pain in the butt? Cyborg asked.  
  
"No, I respect people's personal space." Soren replied. From the way  
  
Cyborg smirked, he knew it was a good answer.  
  
"Ok, say in five minutes the police call, and Godzilla or something is  
  
ravaging downtown. In your current state and abilities, do you think you  
  
would be able to make a contribution to the monster's downfall?" Robin  
  
asked.  
  
"No." Was the surprising answer. That actually got Savior's attention: up  
  
until then he had been near the back of the room, leaning back and basically  
  
giving the impression he was above all this sillyness.  
  
"Why not?" Raven asked. Soren inhaled deeply and let out a great sigh.  
  
"In my current state, all I would do is hinder you guys." Soren said slowly.  
  
"Your current state? What is that?" Starfire asked curiously, her head tilted  
  
to one side like a curious puppy.  
  
"I'm not in full control of my abilities. I can't use them effectively as you  
  
guys can." Soren said in resignation.  
  
"Explain." Raven asked. "My powers take an incredible amount of  
  
concentration to manifest. They don't just pop out, like my name suggests. I  
  
can't even make them do really complex things either, like twist and turn  
  
and go around corners. I probably don't even deserve to be called a Teen  
  
Titan." Soren said softly.  
  
The room was silent, before Robin smiled and applauded lightly. "I couldn't  
  
show more honesty myself. If anything, that makes you more worthy of the  
  
Titan mantle." He said.  
  
"But my powers. Soren started to say.  
  
"Powers don't make the man, the man makes the powers. Hey, look at  
  
Robin, he doesn't have any powers, but he's still a superhero." Cyborg said.  
  
"He's also kicked all our asses despite lacking any metahuman or  
  
supernatural abilities. I KNOW I still have a bruise from THAT." Savior  
  
said. "Besides, don't beat yourself up for failing until you actually, you  
  
know, fail." He added.  
  
"That's right; you still have the right stuff for a superhero!" Beast boy said.  
  
"He may. This is going to be my question: If you were faced with a grim  
  
choice, to save one of us or a busload of children.who do you save? Savior  
  
said. Everyone went quiet at that, interested in Soren's answer.  
  
"The children." Soren replied. All was still; you could have heard a pin drop.  
  
"Very good." Savior said, a small smile spreading over his face. "What?"  
  
The other Titans, minus Beast Boy, said in surprise.  
  
"Think about it. We became superheroes knowing that it was dangerous. We  
  
were, and are, prepared to die. Or am I the only one who remembers the  
  
Final Night?" Savior said.  
  
"Children, however, aren't ready to make that choice. We are. The needs of  
  
many outweigh the needs of one." Beast Boy said. "Couldn't have put it  
  
better myself. You're getting to be astute Beast Boy." Savior said.  
  
"What? Hey, what gives Savior!" Beast Boy exclaimed. Savior looked  
  
surprised. "What?"  
  
"I support you, and you go and call me a stupe!"  
  
Savior got a look that indicated he would like nothing more then to dive out  
  
the nearest window.  
  
"ASTUTE, Beast Boy. It means you spoke wisely."  
  
"Well, why didn't you say so?" Beast Boy said. Soren almost expected  
  
Savior to get up and start running.  
  
"Ok Titans, what say you? Should Soren/Switchblade be a Titan?" Robin  
  
asked.  
  
"Uh, dude, aren't you forgetting something?" Beast Boy asked.  
  
"Right, thanks for the save. The last and most important part of hazing, the  
  
endurance test." Robin said.  
  
"How do you feel about drinking a lot of Soy sauce?" Starfire asked, once  
  
again cocking her head to the side like a puppy.  
  
"ARRGH! Starfire! You aren't supposed to TELL him what it is!" Beast  
  
Boy yelled. Starfire's lip quivered, her big eyes welling up.  
  
"Way to go Green midget." Soren said, rising from his chair. He walked  
  
over to Starfire and patted her reassuringly on the shoulder, causing her to  
  
smile slightly.  
  
"Aww man! We're out of soy sauce!" Cyborg complained, looking in the  
  
fridge.  
  
"No problem. If its extreme overindulgence you're looking for, got any  
  
eggnog?" Soren said with a grin. Cyborg nodded hesitantly, reaching for  
  
some cartons of eggnog in the WAY back of the fridge.  
  
"I say we point him in the direction of the bathroom and make sure it's fully  
  
stocked with toilet paper, just in case." Savior said.  
  
* * *   
  
  
The Titans watched as, in the course of the next ten minutes, Soren  
  
calmly consumed a dozen cartons of Eggnog. "  
  
"You know, I never really liked it in the first place, but now I am definately  
  
never drinking eggnog again." Savior said as Soren downed the last of the  
  
dozen cartons, looking slightly queasy at first, and then he let loose a loud  
  
belch. Cyborg and Beast Boy applauded as the massive belch seemed to  
  
shake the entire Tower.  
  
"Wow." Starfire said in amazement.  
  
"Well. That definitely tops Beast Boy's belch record." Raven said. "Well, I  
  
passed your last test. Am I a Titan or not?" Soren asked.  
  
"Not yet. If you truly want to be a Titan, I say you have to prove yourself in  
  
battle. But since we are lacking a current villain and breaking Jack or  
  
Aberration out strikes me as more then a tad bit foolish." Savior said,  
  
tapping the side of his head. "Ah, I know. You have to do what I was  
  
subjected to, cleaning."  
  
"This place looks pretty clean already." Soren said, gesturing around at the  
  
near-spotless Living Room. "Heh. That's because I cleaned it. No, no, you  
  
have to clean.the basement." Savior said.  
  
*Dramatic music plays*  
  
"Where the hell did that come from?" Soren asked. "  
  
The author's an idiot sometimes." Cyborg said.  
  
I heard that.  
  
*bolt of lightning strikes Cyborg*  
  
"I said sometimes, SOMETIMES!" Cyborg yelled.  
  
Fair enough.  
  
"Is this normal?" Soren asked. The others nodded. "Ok, but anyways, to  
  
become a Titan, you must clean.the basement." Savior said again.  
  
*More dramatic music plays*  
  
"Are you sure Savior? We don't want to irreparably damage the kid." Robin  
  
said.  
  
"Hey, I had to clean BEAST BOY'S ROOM. He's got to do something at  
  
least that bad!" Savior snapped.  
  
"True, true."Robin said. "Alright Soren, if you want to become a Titan,  
  
follow me." Robin said, leading him out of the room. * * *   
  
"So, to become a Titan, I just have to clean the basement? No sweat." Soren  
  
asked as he followed behind Robin, his arms full of cleaning supplies.  
  
"Believe me; it will be much harder than that." Robin said, wrenching open  
  
a large steel door. A god-awful smell flowed up the steps beyond the door,  
  
causing Robin to pinch his nose and recoil.  
  
"There should be a gas mask in that pile of cleaning stuff you have." Robin  
  
said. Soren gritted his teeth and walked down the stairs, Robin quickly  
  
shutting the door behind him. Once he reached the bottom of the steps he  
  
flicked on the lights.  
  
The great deal of rats that were on the floor scurried away as Soren stepped  
  
forward, taking in the filth that caked the floors and walls. He wrinkled his  
  
nose in disgust and went to work.   
  
* * *  
  
  
"Well, its been two hours, should we let him up?" Cyborg said,  
  
leaning against the basement door. "Yeah, considering it was so bad even I  
  
didn't want to clean it.I recall the Constitution prohibits cruel and unusual  
  
punishment." Savior replied.  
  
The other Titans, who were gathered around the doorway, nodded their  
  
assent. Cyborg nodded and opened the door, instantly recoiling at the sight  
  
that stood within. Soren stood at the top of the stairway, every inch of his  
  
body caked in grime. He actually spat out a little of it onto the floor. "  
  
All clean." He growled, walking towards the bathroom. He paused just shy  
  
of the bathroom door, turning his head.  
  
"Hey Savior, I owe you for this."  
  
"It could have been worse. Your test could have been fighting the Lord."  
  
Savior said.  
  
"I think that would have been better!" Soren yelled, before entering the  
  
bathroom.  
  
"Believe me Soren, if you actually think that, you have a LOT to learn."  
  
Savior said, his voice and eyes cold.   
  
* * *  
  
  
Hours later, Soren sat alone in the Main Room, hunched over the  
  
computer console.  
  
"You do you realize its nearly 1 o'clock in the morning?" Savior asked,  
  
coming up behind Soren  
  
"Yeah, I just wanted to finish this." Soren replied with an yawn.  
  
"What is 'this', exactly?" Savior said, leaning down to look over Soren's  
  
shoulder at the screen.  
  
"Costume ideas. The stuff I was wearing today was a last-minute choice."  
  
Soren said.  
  
Savior smirked as he looked over the costume ideas.  
  
"Not bad, but you have to be practical on top of trying for that certain look.  
  
A cape may seem cool at the time, but then it gets caught in a revolving door  
  
and the bank robber shoots you to death while you're trying to free yourself.  
  
But on that note, and considering your ability and name, what about this?"  
  
He said, a Shimmer strand extending from his hand. It split off into multiple,  
  
hair-like strands that immediately started typing away at the keys. Screens  
  
flashed faster than Soren could follow but then it abruptly stopped. "Wow."  
  
Soren said in awe. The costume now displayed was amazing; it consisted of  
  
black boots, gray pants, a dark red shirt, and a long black coat. To complete  
  
the look were a pair of black wrap-around sunglasses. "Make sure you  
  
submit that to Robin, he'll get it made with the proper material. Well, good  
  
night." Savior said, and started to walk away.  
  
"How do you do that?" Came Soren's voice, halting him in his tracks.  
  
"Do what?" Savior replied, turning on his heel.  
  
"Make your powers obey you like that. How do you do it?" Soren asked.  
  
Savior gave him a wry look, and then held his hand palm up, extending the  
  
Shimmer from one hand.  
  
"This is the Shimmer, my own special ability. I think its semi-sentient, so it,  
  
in theory anyway, is like its own little body. Shimmer and I operate together,  
  
I don't control him, it doesn't control me. Powers are not things meant to be  
  
controlled, but used in conjuction with yourself. Try and command  
  
something absolutely.well.the results are rarely good." Savior said,  
  
thinking of the Lord and what had happened during the Final Night.  
  
"But if you're wondering how the Shimmer and I work so well together, it's  
  
because I have a clear mind." Savior explained.  
  
"Clear mind?" Soren asked, confused. "Yes. I don't let myself get distracted,  
  
I do what has to be done, and worry about it later. That, and experience, but  
  
that is unique to everyone. And not very pleasant, usually." Savior said,  
  
exiting the room.  
  
"No distractions." Soren mused as he exited the room, also heading for  
  
bed.  
  
[To Be Continued] 


End file.
